Easter

Easter wouldn't be Easter if we didn't go to Louisiana to spend it with our family. Well, I guess it would, for Easter is the beloved time of year that we set aside to remember our dear Savior's death and more importantly His Resurrection!

Yet it's this time of year that we travel to Louisiana to see some of our family...and this year just seemed all-the-more special. We left on Tuesday and traveled as far as we could before we ran into some weather. We got off the interstate in Pearl, MS, where we have stayed once before, but this time we accidentally chose to stay on the wrong side of the tracks...oops! The hotel, a Country Inn & Suites, appeared brand new from the outside, but once we went up to our room...it was apparent that the inside had not been remodeled as the outside had been done. We were tired so we fell fast asleep and awoke the next morning for a quick bite to eat and then check out and hit the road...uh, watching the manager dropping his little baggie of drugs on the floor in front of us wasn't on our agenda...but it happened...like I said, 'wrong side of the tracks'! Next time, we'll either stick with what hotels we know or continue traveling! The next day we drove on to see my grandmother, my mom's mom, who was staying in the hospital. We were able to spend some time with her before we drove on to see my grandfather, my dad's dad. We drove by his house and picked him up before going to check into our hotel. The hotel was really nice, and we were given a suite with a king-size bed and a little living room/kitchen area which had a pull-out sofa for the girls at night. This set-up was perfect for us, for during the day time we could use the living area to visit with Pawpaw.

That evening, we went to one of our favorite restaurants there, Imperial Cathay, and Tressie had the thrill of her life. We ordered her an appetizer, chicken-on-a-stick, for her meal, and they brought her so that she could heat her own food. Oh, what fun those girls had, and how special Tressie felt! They each had to take a turn at it!



The next day Pawpaw came over to the hotel and had breakfast with us, and then he took us to a really neat museum, one of The Karpeles Manuscript Library Museums. There are nine of them in the United States, and the museums rotate their privately-owned exhibits of original manuscripts and documents. We were able to see the first national Thanksgiving Day proclamation under the Constitution as well as several other well-written, historical documents. The museum also has exhibits of local artists, and one of Pawpaw's good friends, had an art exhibit going on, so we were able to see some of her beautiful watercolor paintings. Then we drove over to see some "old" friends of mine (just kidding, Brian and Rachel!) to give them a baby gift.

After we left them, we headed over to Barnwell to see another art exhibit (It was beautiful photography, Bob! My favorite was the close-up of Audrey! I know you are so proud!) While we were there, I took the opportunity to take a few photos in the conservatory of my beautiful girls!

We spent the rest of the day having fun and running around town checkin' out this and that. We ate lunch at an unusual Mexican restaurant and then went to visit Auntie "Uh-Oh!" She looks so good, and it was wonderful to see her. That evening, we had a quick bite to eat before taking Pawpaw home and then heading back to the hotel. After breakfast with him the next morning, we left to drive over to my cousin's home where my mom's side of the family was all getting together.

We love you, Pawpaw, and we had a wonderful visit with you!